Shapiro says Butler County man, who shielded family during shooting at Trump rally, is a ‘hero’

• Kiley Koscinski/WESA
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  Kiley Koscinski is a reporter for 90.5 WESA. She reports on breaking stories from a variety of realms in Pittsburgh; with specific interest in the growing technology sector.
  
  She has previously produced Morning Edition and The Confluence for 90.5 WESA. Before that she worked as a producer and assignment desk editor at NewsRadio 1020 KDKA. Kiley attended Point Park University and was the Music Director of the student-run radio station, WPPJ.
  
  Kiley is deeply interested in the oddities of Pittsburgh and the communities that make up the city’s underbelly. Stories and tips can be sent to kkoscinski@wesa.fm

 Kiley Koscinski / 90.5 WESA

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks at a press conference on Sunday, July 14, 2024 following a shooting at a Trump rally. Pennsylvania State Police Col. Christopher Paris stands nearby.

The Butler County man who was fatally wounded at a campaign rally for former President and presidential candidate Donald Trump “died a hero” when he shielded his family with his body after a gunman opened fire Saturday during a campaign rally attended by thousands of people at the county Farm Show grounds, Gov. Josh Shapiro said.

Speaking at a midday news conference, Shapiro identified the man as Corey Comperatore, 50, and called his shooting and that of two other men who were wounded by gunfire “shocking, for this Commonwealth and the country.” Shapiro said he had just finished speaking by phone with Comperatore’s wife and had learned that Comperatore was a firefighter, a man who attended church, loved his community and “an avid supporter of the former president.”

“[Comperatore’s wife] asked me to share with you that Corey died a hero,” the governor said. “He dove on his family to protect them. May his memory be a blessing.”

In social media posts, Comperatore was identified as a former chief of the Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company in Sarver, Butler County. The other two victims have not been identified, but officials at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh said both are from Western Pennsylvania and both remain in critical condition Sunday.

The governor ordered flags to fly at half-staff in Pennsylvania to honor Comperatore. He also decried the actions of the shooter, identified by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park. Secret Service agents shot and killed Crooks on the roof of a building near the Farm Show grounds. Investigators have said they are still working to determine a motive for his actions.

“We need to use a peaceful political process to settle… differences,” Shapiro said, calling on all leaders to “take down the temperature [and] rise above the hateful rhetoric that exists.”

Shapiro said he had spoken with relatives of one of the injured men, and he urged all Pennsylvanians to pray for their recovery. He declined to provide details about the ongoing investigation of the shooting, instead referring questions to law enforcement agencies.

Little was immediately known about Crooks, a 2022 graduate of Bethel Park High School. Voter registration records showed he was registered as a Republican. No one answered the telephone or responded to a message left at the red-brick ranch home where he lived on a street lined with modest brick homes, and the neighborhood surrounding the home was quiet early Sunday. The only indications of a connection to Saturday’s events were police blockades preventing entry to the block in which the house is located.

“From background I’ve gotten from people that I know that have gone to school with him, he was your typical average kid — more on the quiet side, relatively intelligent,” said Allegheny County Councilor Dan Grzybek, who represents the district that includes Bethel Park.

Grzybek noted that Crooks, while a student, had won a $500 math and science scholarship and called him “a pretty decent student.”

“Everyone I spoke to was very surprised by this, he said.

But a person who identified herself as “Thomas’ Mom” posted a story to an Instagram account bearing Crooks’ name and a brief profile statement: “Life sucks/20 years old.” In the story, the writer said “Thomas was a great boy and did very well in school,” but added that he “was dealing with a lot of built-up anger from bullies.”

“I know what my son has done and I had no idea what built up all this anger . . . ” the writer posted before concluding: “Rip, His Mom.”

The account had been deactivated on Sunday.

Julia Zenkevich, Christopher Ayers, Chris Potter and Cindi Lash of WESA contributed to this report.

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